Ironer



Aug 2l., 1934- G. K. PARSONS 1,970,815

IRONER l Filed April 14, 1931 3 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR ATTORNEYS Aug.21, 1934. G. K. PARSONS IRONER Filed April 14. 1931 5 Sheets-Sheet 2INVENTOR @oye/. 7ans ans ATTOREYS Aug 21, 1934- G. K. PARSONS 1,970,815

IEONER Filed April 14. 1931 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOH ATTO R N EYAS' l'Patented Aug. 21, 1934 IRONEB George K. Parsons, Detroit, Mich.

Application April 14, 1931, Serial No. 530,118

6 laims.

This invention rentes to ironing and more particularly to an ironingmachine amxahle to a washing-machine or the like, to secure its motivepower from the drive shaft thereof.

It is an object of this invention to provide such an ironer which is ofimproved construction, but

which nevertheless is relatively very lighhand y easily lifted andattached to or detached from a wng machine.

l@ Another object ci this invention lies in the provision of novel andeiiective but simple ineans for attaching the cover to the ironing roll.

Other objects and advantages will be apparent from the followingdescription, wherein reference l5 is ine to the accompanying drawingsillustrating a preferred embodiment of my invention and wherein similarreference numerals designate siniilar parts throughout the severalviews.

1n the drawings:

Figure 1 is aside elevational view showing improved ironer attached to awashing machine l oi the type described in my co-pending applica tion,Serial Number 530,117, filed on the itith day of April, 1931.

Figure 2 is a top plan view of the same.

Figure 3 is a detail vertical longitual sectionalview of my ironer, partof the operating hmdle being broken away.

Figure Li is a detail top view thereof, partly in it@ plan and partly insection.

Figure 5 is an end elevational view looking in the direction indicatedby the line and arrows 5-5 of Figure 3.

Figure 6 is an elevational view oi the opposite 35 end of my improvedironer, with the gear casing cover removed. Y

Figure '7 is an enlarged detail sectional view of my preferred form ofclutch member for releasingl a gear to stop the roll when the shoe ismoved iiii " 49 away by upward movement of the handle, and

Figure 8 is an enlarged detail Icross section oi' the lock which 1employ to fix the position of the shoe except when it is moved by thehandle.

Referring now to the drawings: Across the top 45 of the washing-machinetub extends a supporting cross-bar 10, the details of construction ofwhich are shown and described in my Patent 1,913,612, granted June 13,1933. The cross-bar carries a. downwardly extending elongated boss 11,Figure "50 l, upwardly through which passesan extension tremity of theextension shaft, which socket serves as a support for certain of theattachments a1'- xable thereto. My improved ironer carries a downwardlyextending sleeve portion 13 formed to accurately dt within the socket,and a locating pin la, which ts within a suitable aperture in thecross-bar to position the ironer and prevent rotation thereof within thesocket of the crossbar; as .shown in Figure 1. A vertical shaft 15 isjournaled in and extends upwardly through the portion 13, and is slottedat its lower end to enable driving the e by the extension shaft 12,which carries a collar and cross pin at its upper end, as shown anddescribed in the aforesaid co-pending application. A worm 16 is carriedby and fast upon the shaft l5 near its top, as shown in Figure 5. Aworin wheel 1'7, Figures 3 and 5, is drivable by the worm 16 and isafiixed to the horizontal shaft 18, which extends through the tubularhousing 19 and carries a gear 20 at its other extremity, within the gearhousing 21, which gear housing also serves as a supporting ir. d cover22 is suitably secured to the gear housing, as by screws 23.

The housing and supporting frame 21 rotatably support a roller 2d in themanner best shown in Figure 3. 1t will be seen that a tubular support 25is rigidly carried by an elongated boss 26, iced integrally with theframe 21. The roll 2i is journaled upon the supporting tube 25, as at 27and 2h, and a shaft 29 for driving the roll entends through the tube 25,carrying a coupling member 3d at its end through which the roll may bedriven. The coupling member may be secured to the shaft by a set screw,as '15. The roll may be released at will from the driving shaft 29 bymeans of the pin 31, carried by the coupling member 30, which normallyengages an aperture in the end plate 32 of the roll to drive the same.The pin 3l is normally held in driving engagement with the roll, withits end in the aperture in the end plate 32, by a spring-pressed baildetent 33 engageable in a circumferential slot 34 in the pin. When thepin is' pulled outwardly, the roll is released, ,and may remainstationary, which is frequently convenient in pressing. The roll drivingshaft '29 is drlvable by the gear 20 through the idler gear 36, and thegear 35, the idler being journaled on a. pin 37 extending through thehousing. The gear is freely rotatable upon the shaft 29, but may besecuredthereto to enable driving the ro11by the clutch member 38, whichis slidably splined 4on the shaft and formed withA radially projectingteeth 39, adapted to engage complementary .inwardly projecting teeth 40,carried vby thegear 35, as upon a ring 41 which may be riveted to theside thereof adjacent the clutch, as shown in Figure 7. The clutch isnormally urged toward the engaged position by the button 42 carried by aspring-pressed plunger 43. The spring is designated 44.

Another tubular support 45 is carried by the housing behind the roll, asshownI in Figures 4, 5, and 7, and serves as a support for a shoe 46,engageable against the roll, and an operating handle 47 for moving theshoe toward and away from the roll. As shown in Figure 5 the shoe ismoved toward the roll as the handle is moved downwardly and away whenthe handleis moved upwardly. The shoe is pivotally affixed to a crank48, and its inner cylindrically concaved face is held in substantialalignment with the surface ofthe roll `by the looped spring 49, whichurges the bottom of the shoe toward the roller.

To enable locking the shoe to prevent outward movement thereof when ithas been moved inwardly by the handle to any desired position, thehandle does not act directly upon the shoe, but is secured to theshaft50, which passes centrally through the tubular sup,ort 45 andactuates a lock, which in turn actuates the shoe through the tubularshaft 51. As shown in Figure 4, the shafts 50 and 51 and support 45 maybe arranged one within the other to conserve space; while the tubularconstruction of as many of the shafts and supports as possible used inmy ironer, materially lightens the entire assembly. The shaft 51 actsupon the shoe-supporting crank 48 ythrough the relatively stiff torsionspring 52, which enables the shoe to give slightly if material of uneventhickness is fed through the machine. The crank 48 is freely rotatableabout the shaft 50, and is formed .with an integral sleeve portion 53,which extends into the tube 45, where it stops a spaced distance from anannular oollaror sleeve member 54 rigidly carried by the end of theshaft 51. The torsion spring 52 is positioned within the space thusformed and encircling the shaft 50, and is formed with angularly' bentend portions 55, which exl tend outwardly in opposite directionsparallel to theaxis of the shafts and tubular support to engage suitableapertures in the sleeves 53 and 54.

The lock itself, which functions somewhat in the manner of anoverrunning clutch, forms no part of this invention, but itsconstruction is shown in Figure 8 and will subsequently be described inorder that the operation of the entire device may be understood. It willbe seen (note Figures 6 and 7) that the actuating portion, which is-controlled by the` operating handle 47 through the shaft 59, carries acylinder cam 5 6 at its extremity within the gear housing. 'I'he trackof the cylinder cam moves a lever 57, integrally with which is formed ashifting yoke 58 for moving the clutch member 38. 'I'he cam is arrangeds o that when the handle is moved upwardly to move thev shoe away fromthe roll, the clutch member 38 is slid away from the gear 35 by the yoke58, and the gear is accordingly released, so that the roll is no longerrotatable thereby.

As shown in Figure 7 the slot 78 within which the yoke acts,.formed inthe periphery of the slidable clutch member 38, is wide enough to permitthe yoke to move inwardly toward the gear all the way when the handle 47is depressed without affecting the clutch except to free it. It is thenpushed into engagement by the spring 44 when the clutch teeth 39 and 40are aligned.

As shown in Figures 5, 7 and 8, movement of the handle 47 rotates themembers 59 within the lock casing, which is in the form of a ring 63secured within the housing and arranged concentrically about the shaft50 beside the cam member 56. The annulus 63 may be secured to thehousing by screws, as 62. The members 59 may project integrally from thecam member 56 back into the area bounded by the ring 63. 'I'heshoe-actuating shaft 51 carries within the lock the disc 60, which maybe formed with one or more peripherally cut away portions or slots 61.As shown in Figure 8, the bottom surfaces of the slots or cut outportions 61 are concentric with the periphery of the disc, except for aflattened portion 61', which enlarges the distance at that point betweenthe bottom of the slot and the annulus 63. A ball or roller 64 ispositioned between the disc 60 and the'ring 63 in the inclined runwayformed by part of the cut out portion of the disc. In the constructionhere shown a roller is used, which is normally wedged between the discand the ring by the spring-pressed plunger 65, as shown in Figure 8.Forcing the shoe away from the roll would tend to turn the disc in thedirection of the arrow 66, which movement the rollers 64 resist by theirWedging action, as will be readily apparent. If, however, it is desiredto move the shoe away from the roll by means of the handle, upwardmovement of the handle moves the members 59 in the direction of thearrows 67, and the members 59 release the rollers 64 by forcing themtoward the larger part of the opening, after which continued movement ofthe handle turns the disc in the direction of the arrow 66 to move theshoe away from the roll. When the shoe is moved toward the roll by meansof the handle, the members 59 are moved in the opposite direction tothat indicated by the arrows 67, and move the disc by engagement withthe ends 68 of the slots in the disc. Such move; ment of the disc is notresisted by the rolls as friction then urges them `toward the largerends of the runways. l

Rubber feet 69 may be secured to the outside of the gear housing, asshown in Figure 4, upon which the ironer may be stood when not in use.

The driving shaft of the washing machine to which my ironer is designedto be coupled in the manner previously described, may be driven atvarying speeds, a variable speed transmission being incorporatedtherein, the details of construction of which are disclosed in myco-pending application, Serial Number 530,117, filed on the 14th day ofApril, 1931. Accordingly the rate of rotation of the roll 24 may bevariedby means of the gear shift lever upon the washer, and when ironingsimple pieces or. fiat work, the roll may be rotated much faster thanordinarily ironing machine rolls are driven, as in constant speedmachines the rate of rotation of the roll must be slow enough for allpurposes. The gear shifting lever and transmission housing are shown inFigure 1, designated 70 and 71 respectively. An electrical heatingelement 72 may be positioned within the shoe as shown in Figure 5,extending longitudinally thereof adjacent the ironing surface.Electrical connection to the heating element may be provided by means ofa flexible insulated cord 76 of the usual style, the plug 77 of whichmay be inserted in any receptacle, al-

though I preferably provide a receptacle for such tion as well as in thedrawings accompanying the present application.

The roll, which is formed of sheet metal, may

be provided with a longitudinal groove '73, which is partly closed byover-hanging edges, as shown in Figure 5. The cover may then be securedto the roll by means of a rod, rope, heavy seam,or any other suitableenlargement, which may be sewed to one end of the cover and slipped intothe groove from the end. The enlargement is of course of such size thatit cannot be pulled radially outwardly between the over-hanging edges ofthe groove.

While it will be apparent that the illustrated Aembodiment of myinvention herein disclosed is well calculated to adequately fulfill theobjects and advantages primarily stated, it is to be understood that theinvention is. susceptible to variation, modification and change withinthe spirit and scope of the subjoined claims.

What I claim is:

l. In an ironing machine, a combined gear housing and support, arotatable roll carried thereby, an ironing shoe extending adjacent theroll, and means for moving the shoe toward and away from the roll atwill, and yieldably maintaining it in desired spaced relation to theroll, comprising a tubular supporting member extending from the housingadjacent the shoe, a hollow shaft extending therethrough and resilientlyconnected to the shoe to enable movement thereof, a central shaftextending through said hollow shaft and rotatable independently thereof,both of said shafts extending into the housing, a handle carried by saidcentral shaft adjacent the outer extremity of the tubular member, andmeans within the housing connect- -ing said central shaft with thehollow shaft operative to resis'tlmovement of the hollow shoe- `carry'gfsh ftaway from the rollexcept when induced by actuation of the handle.1

2. In an ironing device, a combined gear housing and support, geardriving means therein, a

' rotatable roll carried by the housing 'and drivable through saidgears, an ironing shoeextending adjacent the roll, a handle for movingthe shoe toward and away from the roll, a unitary tubular support forboth the shoe and the handle carried by the housing, a shaft connectedto the handle and'extending through said tubular support, means Withinthe housing and connected to said shaft for controlling the roll-drivingmeans upon movement of the handle, and means connecting the handle andshoe enabling movement of the shoe by the same handle.

3. In an ironing device, a combined gear housing and frame member, arotatable shaft carried by the housing and projecting thereinto andtherefrom, a rotatable roll carried by said shaft outside the housing, agear driving means for the roll within the housing, including a gearupon the rollshaft but normally freely rotatable thereon, a clutchmember enabling securing the gear to the roll shaft, an ironing shoeextending adjacent the roll, supporting means for theshoe also carriedby and projecting from the housing in substantially parallel relation tothe roll, a handle for moving the. shoe toward and away from the roll atwill, a shaft connected to the handle and extending through the shoesupport 90 into the housing and means connecting the last mentionedshaft and the clutch for actuating said clutch upon movement. of thehandle, to

thereby secure the gear to the shaft when the shoe is moved toward theroll, and to release the gear from the shaft when the shoe is moved awayfrom the roll.

4. In an ironing machine, an ironing roll, an ironing shoe, a. handlefor moving the shoe to a position ai any desired distance, withinlimits, from the roll, clutch means for resisting movement of the shoeaway from the roll except when induced by movement of the handle, andmeans including a releasing member for releasing the clutch uponmovement of the handle to permit free movement of the shoe in eitherdirection thereby.

5. In an ironing machine, a roll, an ironing shoe, a handle for movingthe shoe to any desired proximity with respect to the roll, withinlimits, and means for resisting movement of the shoe away from the rollin any position to which it may be moved by the handle, and meansconnecting the handle and resisting means to release the latter uponmovement of the handle in a direction to move the shoe away from theroll.

. 6. In an ironing machine, a roll, an ironing shoe, ahandle for movingthe shoe to any desired proximity with respect to the roll withinlimits, a clutch member releasable upon actuation of the handle ineither direction but adapted to resist l movement of the shoe away fromthe roll, means GEORGE K. PARSONS.

